Pre-Tournament Open Letter: A Call for Safety and Non-Discrimination Guarantees for the 2026 World Cup

The FIFA World Cup 2026 is approaching. Millions of people will need to travel to North America, a significant number of them to the United States, to attend matches, work at them, cover them as journalists, or represent their country.

In the current context, an urgent question arises: what real guarantees will be offered to players, delegations, journalists, workers, volunteers and supporters who will need to enter US territory or travel within it during the tournament?

This question is not theoretical. It is not only about FIFA's image. It concerns people's physical safety, their freedom of movement, their access to matches, their treatment at borders, their protection against abusive checks, and their right not to be targeted because of their nationality, origin, immigration status, appearance, religion, political opinions, or real or presumed membership in a vulnerable community.

Risks already documented

For several years, human rights organizations have documented significant concerns regarding certain migration and border practices in the United States.

These concerns notably relate to: detention conditions; the treatment of migrants and asylum seekers; family separations; the use of force; targeted checks; respect for fundamental procedures.

In the context of a global event such as the World Cup, these issues are not abstract. They become immediate, operational risks for people who will need to enter the United States, travel within it, work there, or attend matches.

These findings raise a series of concrete questions that FIFA cannot leave unanswered as the tournament approaches.

Could a supporter be barred from entering the country because of their nationality? Could a journalist be questioned, detained, or monitored because of their opinions? Could a delegation member be treated differently depending on their country of origin? Could visitors from migrant, racialized, or Muslim communities be more heavily targeted by authorities? Could workers or volunteers fear moving freely around competition venues?

These questions must receive clear answers before the tournament begins.

FIFA cannot limit itself to organizing matches. It must guarantee that the event can be held under safe, fair, and non-discriminatory conditions.

It must also ensure that host countries — and particularly the United States, given the concerns raised — are able to protect everyone taking part in the World Cup or travelling to attend it.

It is not enough to say that football brings people together. The people who travel to take part in it must also be genuinely protected.

We therefore ask FIFA to obtain, make public, and enforce precise guarantees regarding:

access to US territory for players, delegations, journalists, workers, and supporters authorized to take part in or attend the event; the absence of discriminatory treatment at borders and in host cities; protection against arbitrary detention, abusive interrogation, harassment, or targeted checks; freedom of movement around competition venues, accommodation, transport zones, and public spaces linked to the tournament; the establishment of emergency mechanisms accessible to anyone arrested, detained, questioned, or prevented from attending matches; the presence of an independent monitoring and accountability mechanism before and during the event; the existence of a contingency plan should certain minimum guarantees not be obtainable.

We also ask national football federations, the governments of participating countries, sponsors, broadcasters, and FIFA's commercial partners to publicly demand these guarantees.

Their responsibility is engaged. If incidents occur, it will not be enough to say the risks were unforeseeable. They are already known. They must therefore be taken seriously now.

Sponsors and commercial partners cannot benefit from the tournament's global visibility while remaining silent in the face of risks that could directly affect people on the pitch, in the stands, in the streets, or at the borders.

We also call on human rights organizations, supporter associations, unions, journalist groups, and international civil-society organizations to document the risks, press FIFA on them, and demand public, verifiable, binding commitments.

The 2026 World Cup must not become an event where some people wonder whether they will be welcomed, checked, targeted, or detained because of who they are or what authorities believe they represent.

A global event cannot run on trust alone. It must rest on guarantees.

If FIFA and the relevant authorities cannot provide these guarantees, then every option must be considered, including moving certain matches, reorganizing activities planned in the United States, or partially relocating some components of the tournament.

The question is no longer only whether the World Cup's organization is consistent with the values FIFA claims to uphold. The question is simpler, graver, and more urgent:

Will the people travelling to the 2026 World Cup in the United States actually be safe?

Until this question receives a clear, public, and verifiable answer, FIFA, its partners, and the host authorities cannot ask the public, delegations, and supporters to extend them blind trust.

The World Cup must be a place of gathering. It must never become a space of fear, exclusion, or vulnerability.

We are therefore demanding immediate guarantees. Not general principles. Not communication formulas. Concrete, public, verifiable, and enforceable commitments before the tournament begins.